Newsletter

Ga. DOT chairman steps down

ATLANTA - The chairman of the powerful state Department of Transportation board stepped down on Thursday, saying he wants to pursue a budding romance with the department commissioner he helped put in office.

Mike Evans said he and Gena Abraham have developed a relationship that "we both want to be more than just professional."

"She's become my friend and as that friendship has developed we realized there was a possibility of something more than just a friendship," Evans told the board at a packed meeting.

Abraham, chosen by Gov. Sonny Perdue to lead the troubled department, has been at the helm for just five months. She declined to comment after the meeting, disappearing into her office with Evans.

There was no word on Abraham's future with the department. A special board meeting was scheduled for Monday.

A spokesman for Perdue said the governor was in Texas participating in a forum on sustainable energy and would reserve comment until he returned on Friday.

Evans' sudden departure adds to the tumult at the department, which has a $2 billion annual budget and nearly 5,800 employees. Last week Perdue announced he had authorized an outside audit of DOT after a preliminary study found that that the state has promised about $1 billion more in transportation contracts than it can afford.

"There is a smell that's not very pleasant about what's happening and what's being found there," Perdue said last week.

Evans and Abraham had outlined the fiscal problems last week in a joint news conference.

Evans said Thursday that their relationship grew "over the last month or so" as the two worked together.

"I have grown to admire and respect her more and more every day," he said.

Evans said he and Abraham approached the board's vice chairman, Garland Pinholster, two weeks ago to decide how to handle the matter. The board was informed Wednesday and met in executive session for almost two hours Thursday morning before Evans announced his resignation.

"My heart is certainly heavy today," Evans said, noting that he was disappointing allies who had helped him get re-elected just a few months ago.

The revelation of the burgeoning romance left some board members fumbling for words.

"I don't really know how to talk about a personal relationship," William Kuhlke Jr. said. He praised Evans for handling the issue properly.

But some members were shaking their heads.

"This could not have happened at a more inopportune time," board member David Doss said.

Complicating Abraham's future are the circumstances surrounding her election by the state DOT board. Perdue backed her candidacy. House Speaker Glenn Richardson, who has clashed with the governor, was pushing Rep. Vance Smith, chairman of the House Transportation committee.

Abraham won by a 7-6 vote after a bitter campaign. Evans voted for her.

Abraham, 39, is the first woman to lead the state DOT. She holds a doctorate in civil engineering from Georgia Tech and had served as state property officer.

Evans, 47, served in the state House from 1993-2001. He was elected to transportation board in 2003 representing the 9th Congressional District in North Georgia. Both Evans and Abraham are divorced, a DOT spokesman said.